Laurence Dollimore
THE leader of Andalucia has demanded the Spanish government lift the 14-day quarantine imposed on international travellers arriving throughout the state of alarm.
Partido Popular leader Juanma Moreno branded the measure ‘nonsense’ in an interview with Telecinco this morning, warning of a loss of tourism in hotspots like the Costa del Sol.
Some 70% of the Malaga coastline’s tourists come from abroad, the overwhelming majority from the UK.
Moreno said the industry needs ‘certainty’ and that reservations are usually made ‘months in advance’. This, he says, means the 14-day quarantine staying in place until potentially late June could discourage visitors from planning a trip to Spain.
He added that the quarantine is ‘wasting precious time’ and taking away the ability of destinations like the Costa del Sol to compete with rivals like Portugal and Italy.
Moreno added that the UK will have a mandated quarantine for anyone arriving from Spain from June 8, while France has announced similar measures.
It means travellers could be facing a total of four weeks in self-isolation if they opt for a holiday to Spain.
But Moreno’s concerns come despite prime minister Pedro Sanchez telling international tourists to begin planning their holidays to Spain from July onward.
The PSOE leader said at the weekend that ‘the entry of foreign tourists in safe conditions’ will return in July and that ‘there will be a tourist season this summer.’
Additionally, that will be once territories have entered and spent two weeks in Phase 3 and have entered the so-called ‘new normal’.
That means the state of alarm, and its attached quarantine, would no longer be in place.
